Biotin is mentioned a lot on the forums and in The Men's Hair Book as a very important vitamin for hair growth and hair health. I have been looking into taking it but I've read mixed reviews about it. Many people claim it has thickened up their hair and almost doubled how fast their hair grows. However I've also read that it leads to acne, and that some studies have shown that it does nothing for your hair if you're not severely deficient (which I've read is a very rare deficiency to have).

I know some guys on here are taking it regularly, so I was wondering if you guys can share your experience on it. Have you actually noticed any changes to your hair, and has there been any changes in your skin? Also, I have some small miniaturized hairs near the corners of my hairline, would Biotin help rethicken that area? Thanks.

Biotin is a supplement that is worth a try for hair growth or hair loss in men.

Biotin is the kind of supplement that has plenty of anecdotal evidence showing that it works but which would in theory only lead to some gains and not some impressive gains. Then again, there are no supplements or products that offer impressive gains in hair growth or hair loss, not even those hair loss products that are scripted by doctors. You can, of course, use supplements for men's hair in a smart manner to complement your diet, but your diet must also be optimized for the supplements to provide any benefits.

Biotin is very cheap, so it's always a nice add-on product if you're really needing to optimize your hair, as is the case of male pattern baldness where every little bit helps. In theory, biotin would help the most with people who are deficient in this vitamin. Biotin deficiency is not uncommon, meaning that, while it is not common, it can still happen due to several reasons, including genetic ones. Add to this the fact that biotin is water soluble and thus is not stored in the body, and trying biotin isn't that bad of a decision as it's potential benefit outweighs its cost. If your diet isn't great, then biotin is worth a try to see if it yields any hair growth or hair loss benefits.

Even if you're minimally deficient in biotin (e.g. from bad good choices), you will benefit from biotin and so will your hair. The good thing about taking a biotin supplement is that, said from what you get through your diet, you would open up a new window of absorption by taking it at any time when you're not eating any foods with biotin. This leads to a more optimal intake of biotin since, as said above, it's water soluble. This also means that any excess of biotin is simply urinated and not stored, hence biotin is a safe vitamin to take even if you are taking plenty of it through your diet. There are anecdotal reports of people taking mega doses for hair growth and them not experiencing any side effects, although I do not recommend mega dosing.

If its low price fits your budget and considering that you're looking to tame any hair loss and maximize your hair growth, then I'd say go with biotin. Give it a serious shot and then decide for yourself.

As for MSM, it's also a supplement that works for some people while it doesn't for others. Unlike biotin, however, MSM isn't essential for the body (it's basically sulfur) and you could obtain the same from upping your intake of eggs to a couple of eggs a day. Incidentally and as I go from memory, didn't Rogelio mention in The Men's Hair Book something about eggs being great food items for hair growth (not just for the sulfur) while he said that MSM falls under the "unsure" supplements list? I don't have the book in front of me but I remember reading his stance on MSM and how he only saw MSM as a supplement that "could" potentially provide some benefit to hair growth.

If you're trying to maximize your hair growth or hair loss (together with useful hair loss products) and really want to try anything that could yield a small benefit, then MSM is worth a shot too, although it isn't as cheap as biotin. I would still try biotin prior to MSM as biotin is an actual vitamin and thus needed by your body.

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I tried biotin some time ago when I picked it up from a vitamin shop, that was prior to me ordering products online. I'd just go to the vitamin shop and go on a shopping spree.

So yeah I tried biotin for a good four months as it was cheap enough and easy enough to take in the morning and evening. I was also having some weird hair loss problem that had nothing to do with men's hair loss. It turned out to be anemia from low iron. By the time it was discovered after a lot of test I had been a good 6 weeks using biotin.

For me I noticed an improvement in my hair loss without having treated first the anemia. I would say that my hair got thicker and grew a bit faster. Six months before starting the biotin I had notice that I was shedding too much hair and that my hair was brittle and broke even when combing. I was worried it would be the feared male hair loss that is permanent. So I loaded up on vitamins and biotin. The improvement was noticeable and I prefer to remain skeptic when faced with stuff that I don't know about.

When I had my anemia treated all my hair grew back. But it grew back thicker. It was thick enough for some family members that I hadn't seen in a while to ask me what hair product I was using for my thicker hair. I dropped the biotin after four months as I was happy with the results but the new hair growth wasn't as thick as the older hair growth with the biotin. I still had a good head of hair but the thicker hair had faded a bit when I stopped the biotin.

About the hair growth well the same happened when I stopped the biotin. The hair growth slowed down to my usual, which is fast enough already. But with biotin my hair grew noticeably faster. I almost felt like I was cheating as people complimented my hair and asked me what hair product I was using for my improved hair!

Biotin is cheap enough if you know where to get it and which brand to buy. Go with the above post from our admin and the link discussing supplements for men's hair. They discuss there the nutrients for better hair growth and also include a good source for biotin. Like I said it's a cheap supplement so you can always grab a bottle next time you're shopping or on Amazon. Biotin is also very safe and worked even better when I was also taking the usual vitamins like vitamin A,vitamin C etc, but that's just me reporting my personal experience with biotin for faster hair growth and thicker hair.